Expectations for cross-ethnic inclusion by Asian American children and adolescents

Asian American youth’s inclusion decisions were investigated in cross-ethnic peer contexts (Asian and non-Asian). Ten-, 13-, and 16-year-old participants ( N = 134), enrolled in U.S. schools, decided whether to include a same-ethnic peer with different interests or a different-ethnic peer with similar interests. Findings showed that with age, participants more frequently included a peer who shared interests even when this peer was not of the same ethnicity. Participants expected their peer groups to be equally inclusive of others of both ethnic backgrounds, and expected that in-group parents would be less inclusive of cross-ethnic peers. In addition, adolescents expected parents to have prejudicial attitudes about ethnic out-group members. Views about peer group and in-group parents’ inclusivity diverged from adolescents’ own inclusivity. These findings point to areas for intervention regarding the promotion of cross-group friendships and the reduction of prejudice.

Context-Related Sense of Adulthood

Emerging adulthood theory highlights ambivalence about one’s adult status as a distinctive feature of this period. However, most studies that addressed this ambivalence employed rather limited, single-item measures, or measures that focused on specific life domains but addressed them separately. Although existing literature suggests that various life situations are likely to contribute differently to a sense of adulthood, no attempt has been made to date to conceptualize these situations as contexts and to develop a measure that takes them into account. The first study of the present research aims at unveiling the contexts that shape a sense of adulthood by conducting a multiple group exploratory factor analysis on the self-perceived adulthood scale ( Shanahan, Porfeli, & Mortimer, 2005 ). The analyses revealed two factors contributing to a sense of adulthood, which were interpreted as adult and peer contexts. The second study aims at developing a new measure designed to address sense of adulthood in these two contexts. This measure was proven reliable, valid, and stable across three age groups. The present research demonstrates that sense of adulthood is a context-specific feeling. Thus, adult and peer contexts ought to be considered and addressed separately, which has been made possible with our proposed measure.

Adolescent Substance Use, Aggressive Behaviors, and Peer Context Behavioral Norms

The goal of this study was to examine behavioral norm effects in 2 peer contexts (classroom, school) on adolescent substance use (tobacco, alcohol, cannabis) and aggressive behaviors (bullying, physical fighting). Participants were 5,642 adolescents (Mage = 14.29 years, SD = 1.26; 49% boys). There were 3 hypotheses. First, behavioral norms in both contexts affect individual behavior. Second, classroom norms have stronger effects on individual behavior than school norms. Third, classroom and school norms interact and exacerbate each other’s influence. Results indicated that classroom norms had stronger effects than school norms on individual tobacco and alcohol use. Furthermore, school norms had equal or stronger effects than classroom norms on the 2 indicators of aggressive behaviors. There was no evidence for an interaction between classroom and school norms for any dependent variable. This study demonstrates that the complexity of multiple (nested) peer contexts should be considered to fully understand peer influence processes.